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Release Date: September 14, 2012
Studio: Sony Pictures
Director: Paul W.S. Anderson
Starring: Milla Jovovich, Sienna Guillory, Michelle Rodriguez, Bingbing Li, Johann Urb, Boris Kodjoe, Oded Fehr, Kevin Durand, and Shawn Roberts
Plot: The Umbrella Corporation’s deadly T-virus continues to ravage the Earth, transforming the global population into legions of the flesh eating Undead. The human race’s last and only hope, Alice, awakens in the heart of Umbrella’s most clandestine operations facility and unveils more of her mysterious past as she delves further into the complex.

Thoughts: In 2002 if you would have told me after I watched the horrible adaptation that was Paul WS Anderson’s original Resident Evil that they would follow it with four sequels I would have laughed in your face. Yet here I am writing about Resident Evil: Retribution, the fifth movie in the horror turned action series. Not only that, but I’m excited for this latest installment, as I was the last one. This series has turned into a guilty pleasure and I hope a sixth, seventh, and eighth movie follows this one. Keep them coming and I’ll keep watching them and will be entertained.

The new movie introduces fan favorite character (and my personal favorite character from the games) Leon S. Kennedy, along with Ada Wong and Barry Burton from the games. The movie brings back Sienna Guillory as Jill Valentine, who had a cameo in the closing minutes of the last film, along with the return of characters that died in past films, including Oded Fehr as Carlos and Michelle Rodriguez as Rain. Which side, good or bad, these characters are on is unknown, but I’m sure it will be a fun ride finding out. Noticeably absent from Retribution are Claire and Chris Redfield, portrayed by Ali Larter and Wentworth Miller in Afterlife. Rumor has it that they will return in a sixth movie, if it gets made… And I have no reason to think that it will not get made.

I’ve shared my love for the epic-ly bad Resident Evil movie series in the past. These movies from Paul W.S. Anderson are so bad, that I can’t help but love them and be amazed that they just keep coming and coming every year- this will be the 5th movie in the series since 2002.

While not following the story of the games, the movies have interwoven the familiar characters in and out of the sequels. New for Retribution are Johann Urb as Leon Kennedy and Bingbing Li as Ada Wong (pictured right with Milla Jovovich as Alice). A surprise return to the series are Michelle Rodriguez as Rain, whose character (SPOILER ALERT) died in the original movie. Another deceased character making a return is Oded Fehr’s Carlos Oliveira, who appeared in both Apocalypse and Extinction. While I could care less about Rodriguez’s annoying character returning, I’m really glad to hear that Fehr’s Olivera is back as he was one of the most likeable characters introduced in the first four movies. Also returning characters from past films are Sienna Guillory as Jill Valentine, Colin Salmon as James One Shade, Shawn Roberts as Albert Wesker, and Boris Kodjoe as Luther West.

Click to enlarge the images. The left image features Jovovich as Alice, and the right image features both Jovovich and Li.

Resident Evil: Retribution will be hitting theaters on September 14th, 2012. Are you excited for more zombie killing action?

With hit movies able to surpass the $100 million mark and video games being all the rage, is it any wonder that the two often go together? Ever since the release of the film adaptations of such games as Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, the film world has been searching for that next great franchise. To help give you a better idea of what’s to come, we have gathered the five video games which were turned into the Top Video Game Movies of all time.

1. Resident Evil
When this horror game about killing your way out of a mansion full of zombies first debuted, no one thought it would be the highest grossing video game franchise of all time. There are four cinematic film entries starring Milla Jovovich, which have totaled over $500 million in box office sales, and another big screen adventure in the works. There are also various animated films of the game that are available on DVD.

2. Tomb Raider
Angelina Jolie is perhaps most recognized for her role as Laura Croft from the various Tomb Raider games. Much like the above, the game often involves fighting your way out of haunted tombs and features a female lead character. The two feature films with Jolie as Croft grossed over $430 million in ticket sales. While they will not be completing a trilogy with Jolie, studios are itching to continue the franchise on the big screen with a new lead actress.

3. Prince of Persia
The old PC game found new life as a movie and in several other gaming platforms. However, with top notch action producer Jerry Bruckheimer leading the way and Jake Gyllenhaal in the lead role, the movie made over $312 million at the box office. This makes it the single highest grossing video game movie of all time.

4. Mortal Kombat
Although the first entry to this film franchise debuted over 15 years ago, it remains one of the top video game films of all time. The first film made over $122 million at the box office, while the sequel Annihilation made $51 million. This puts its total at over $173 million box office dollars. In addition to the movies, the video game spawned multiple live action series, including a recent web series that starred Jeri Ryan and Michael Jai White.

5. Hitman
While some might guess that big name stars, such as The Rock in 2005’s Doom or Mark Wahlberg as Max Payne, might get the fifth spot, it didn’t happen that way. This 2007 film starred the lesser known Timothy Olphant as Agent 47, who is an assassin for hire. The film’s total is just under $99 million and barely beat out 1994’s Street Fighter for the fifth spot. Hitman has had four video games in its series.

This guest article was written by Sara McDowell. She is an avid Gamer and owns and operates the gaming centric site Video Game Design Schools.

I don’t know about you, but I really really need a vacation. Summer is supposed to be relaxing, but I feel overworked, underpaid, and like I haven’t had anytime for myself in weeks. This weekend, I think it is time for an old fashion Movie Night. But here is the real question, should it be themed or random?

One easy go to option would be to focus on past years Best Picture Oscar nominees. Lets forget the past two years, because 10 films is more of a “Movie Weekend” and not a Movie Night. Reaching back to 2009 we’d have…

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Milk, Frost/Nixon, The Reader, and Slumdog Millionaire. Not only would this be a long Movie Night, but it would be an ultra serious one. Could be great for a gathering where you want to have intellectual conversations, but this isn’t quite what I had in mind to clear my head.

Lets see if I can think of something that is more in line with how I am feeling…

Action packed? Mindless? Popcorn flick? Zombies? Yeah, as bad as the Resident Evil adaptations have been, they fill the quote of my current mindset. They have action, zombies, short runtimes, and if you fall asleep during one and wake up later in the movie you don’t really feel as though you have missed anything. For me, this series is a perfect guilty pleasure Movie Night.

Post a comment and let me know what your favorite kinds of Movie Nights are. Do you like horror? Action? Musicals? War movies? Guilty pleasure movies? Thankfully we have online stores where you can find cheap blu-rays and there are streaming sites where you can find movies like Netflix and YouTube. There is no reason to not make the perfect Movie Night these days. A big thanks goes out to our friends at www.canadapost.ca/shopper/movies-television-on-dvd-bluray/pc/3 for inspiring this article!

Welcome to another edition of The Pit. Lots of stuff is happening in the world of entertainment, here is a sampling.

The good news? Damages (one of the best shows on TV) has been renewed for two more seasons! The bad news? It will only be shown on Direct TV. I’ll have to wait for DVD to see the new seasons. But on the plus side, I usually let Damages episodes build on Tivo and watch them back to back anyway.

EW has a first look at the Lost DVD short that focuses on Hurley and Ben’s time running the island after the finale. Check it out here. I can’t wait for the DVD box set and this short film. So excited for even just a little bit more of Lost!

In another eye rolling story, the talentless cast of Jersey Shore is threatening to strike days before they are supposed to begin shooting their third season. It looks like MTV is going to give them huge raises to stay on the show, instead of doing the smart thing and replacing them all. I can’t wait until the world gets past the “being an a-hole” makes you a celebrity phase.

Have you checked out A&E network’s The Glades? The new series follows Matt Passmore as Jim Longworth, a homicide detective from Chicago who relocates to the sleepy middle of nowhere town of Palm Glade, Florida. While it appears like a easy/low key job, murders begin popping which forces detective Longworth to prove his worth. If you missed it’s premiere, it has been added to 141tv’s Free Video Guide.

There is a new trailer for Resident Evil: Afterlife. This one gives us a better idea of the story and a ton of different versions of Milla. This movie is going to be so epic-ly bad that it will be awesome! Check out the film’s poster and first trailer here.

The official trailer for Resident Evil: Afterlife has been released (and can be viewed below). I can’t think of another awesome video game franchise that has had the misfortune to be butchered for four (count them, four) horrible film adaptations.

In Afterlife, writer/director Paul W.S. Hack Anderson continues the journey of Alice (aka his wife Milla Jovovich), who attempts to help survivors find a safe haven. This time they try going to Los Angeles, which is (you guessed it!) overrun by horrible looking CGI zombies. Will they survive?

I give Anderson’s Resident Evil film series a lot of shit, but they have entered the class of being so bad that I enjoy them. Will I see Afterlife in theaters? Hell no. But I’m sure I’ll enjoy it some day via Netflix or HBO.